Tears of Happiness
by Jewels-Rem
Summary: A group of kids are left to take care of themselves when they get sent to Camp Green Lake. Evan and Grace are left in charge of the group of young kids, will they be able to take care of themselves and their friends in the midst of a crisis? COMPLETED!
1. It Begins

Grace was sad. She was sitting on the curb next to her trailer. He father deserted her, her sister, and her mother. And now, out of grief, her mother was always out of the house. Doing, what? Grace didn't know.  
  
Evan, Grace's best friend, came walking down the street towards her house. Grace started crying. Evan started to run.  
  
When he finally got there he said, "What's wrong Grace?"  
  
She couldn't find her voice because she was crying to hard. He lifted up her head. "Grace?" he said. He hugged her.  
  
"What's wrong?" he asked. "My dad left us." She cried. He looked really sad for her. "And my mom is never around to help take of Hannah!" she exclaimed.  
  
Hannah is Grace's little sister who is 8 years old. She's 4 years younger then Grace.  
  
"I've got nobody!" she said. "You've got me." Evan said. Grace looked at him. "What am I going to do Evan?" she asked.  
  
"You can stay at my house. My mom won't even care." Evan's mom was a druggy and was out of the house at night and in the day she was sleeping. Evan usually takes care of himself. Cooks, cleans, and takes care of his younger brother, Jose.  
  
Grace smiled at him. "What would I do without you Evan?" she said. He grabbed her hand and took her over to his house. Hannah was already there because she was playing with Jose. Evan and Jose Guillen (pronounced Gee-yen. Gee with a G sound, not a J sound) were Hispanic.  
  
Evan's mom was reading a magazine drinking a beer on the couch. "What do you want?" she asked Evan when he and Grace walked in the front door.  
  
"Mom, it's me, Evan. I'm just gonna go play a board game with Jose, Hannah, and Grace." He said. Grace felt sorry for him. His mom didn't even realize it was him.  
  
"Hello Mrs. Guilllen." Grace told her. She squinted her eyes like she was near-sighted. "Hmm? What? Oh, hello, Olivia! How are you?" she asked. Olivia?  
  
"Who's Olivia?" I whispered to Evan. "I'll tell you in my room." He whispered back.  
  
Jose and Hannah were playing Playstation 2 and Hannah was winning the car race. Grace and Evan climbed the ladder of the bunk that Jose and Evan shared. They were greeted by their cat, called Fat Louie.  
  
"Hey Fat Louie." Grace said, petting him. He purred.  
  
"Olivia is my cousin, you remember, the one that died in a car crash." He said, looking down.  
  
"I'm sorry Evan. About your mom." Grace said.  
  
Evan's father left with another woman when Evan was 5, but Evan says that he remembers him. Ever since, his mother had started drinking. Last year, his mother's body sort of collapsed and she went into a coma. Now she sometimes doesn't even know who her own sons are.  
  
"Tomorrow, I'll talk to my mom about you and Hannah staying here, ok? Tonight I'll just say that your staying the night here." He said.  
  
Grace smiled. "Ok, sounds good." She said. "What are you having for dinner?" Grace asked.  
  
"Bologna and beans...again." he said. "Sorry, we don't have enough money for good dinners. I often have to steal food."  
  
Grace all of a sudden looked very worried about him. "But don't worry," he said quickly, "I never get caught."  
  
Grace looked at him. Staring and those beautiful dark eyes.  
  
"Grace? Is mommy home?" Hannah asked. "No, Hannah, she's staying with dad at their friend's house tonight." Grace lied. She didn't want her to worry. It's too much for an 8 year old to think about. She doesn't even know about dad leaving. 


	2. The Call

"Evan!" Grace heard Mrs. Guillen yelling. "Evan!" she yelled again. "Coming!" Evan yelled back. Evan ran out the door of the small bedroom and Fat Louie ran after him. Louie always likes to follow people.  
  
"What mom?" Evan asked when he got into the Living Room/Kitchen. "The phone's for you." She said, dully, staring at the television. She now had 2 empty beer bottles on the small table, now opening another one, and watching a bad TV show. Evan took the phone from her.  
  
"Hello?" he said. "Hello, this is the New York Police Department is this Evan Wallace?" said a male police officer. "What? This is Evan Guillen speaking." Evan said. Evan heard the police officer tell another police officer, "Yeah, that's what I thought." Evan was confused. "I think you have the wrong Evan, sir." Evan said, getting ready to hang up.  
  
"Son, hold on now, I need to talk to you about something very important." The police officer said. "You might want to sit down." He said.  
  
Evan went into the bathroom and sat on the counter. "What is it officer?" Evan asked politely. "It's about your mother." He said. Evan got a sinking feeling in the pit of his stomach. "Yeah?" he said. "Listen, uh, son, your mother has illegally changed her name from Wallace to Guillen. We have just found that out. How long have you been referred to as Evan Guillen?" the police officer asked.  
  
Grace sat down on the bottom bunk and watched Jose and Hannah play PS2. She was scared. How long would she be able to live here with the Guillens? Evan's mom won't let her and Hannah stay forever. And she didn't want Hannah thinking and worrying about stuff like this at such an early age. Even Grace shouldn't have to.  
  
"Ohhh..... Yeah! Uh-Huh! Uh-Huh!" Jose chanted. He just beat Hannah in a car race. He had lost 4 times out of 5 races and finally beat Hannah. Hannah just smirked at him, obviously not happy that she lost to a boy she already beat 2 minutes ago.  
  
Grace was thinking. Should she tell Hannah about all this? She doesn't want to lie to her. Grace wouldn't want to be lied to, even if it meant knowing something as big as this.  
  
"For as long as I can remember, officer." Evan told him. "Well, your mother has lied to the society." That's all? "Um, officer, with all do respect sir, what does this have to do with me?" he asked. "I haven't told you everything about your mother yet, son." The police officer said.  
  
"Um, Hannah?" Grace asked. Hannah paused the game and looked at her. Her neck length dirty blonde hair hitting Jose in the face. "Ow!" he snapped, rubbing his eyes. "Oh, sorry Jose." She said.  
  
"What?" Hannah asked. "Hurry up and unpause it Hannah!" Jose said in the background.  
  
"Come here Hannah." Grace said. Hannah walked over and sat next to Grace on the bed. "What?" she asked.  
  
"Uh," should she tell her? "Um....how was school today?" She said quickly. She couldn't tell her, not now when she was having such a good time, such a good and happy life.  
  
"Fine. I got straight A's." She said proudly. "Good for you Hannah! And how's piano going?" she asked. Jose sighed rather loudly, rolled his eyes, and plopped his head down on the floor. Grace glanced at the screen..he was winning. "Good! My teacher said I'm....progressing really well." She said. "Grace? Can I go now?" she asked. Grace laughed. "Yeah, go ahead!" Jose jolted upright and got ready to win.  
  
"What else is there about her?" Evan asked, worriedly. "Are you sitting down son?" the officer asked......... 


	3. Unwanted News

Grace laid down on Evan's bed. She was tired, and worried for her mom. Is she alive? Is she hurt? Or is she right around the corner, avoiding responsibility, avoiding life, avoiding...her. Grace started silently crying. She didn't know what do to. She can't live on her own like this, even if she is with Evan and Jose. Their mom is still bad, no matter what she does. The police will eventually find out that her mom was gone and that Grace and Hannah are living with the Guillens.  
  
She thought of her dad. How could he leave her and Hannah like this? When they need him most? She was sad, angry, and worried, mainly for Hannah, but also for Evan and Jose. They are living a hard life too, possibly worse than her and Hannah. And there they are, Jose and Hannah, having fun, playing a PS2. No worries. No responsibility. No problems. And then there's Grace and Evan, with crappy mothers and no fathers. They do have worries, they do have responsibility, they do have problems. But they also have each other. They will be strong, they will fight the problems, they will take care of each other and their siblings. Whether they get help from the police or not.  
  
"Why does it matter if I'm sitting down?! Tell me about my mother!" Evan said, loudly, but not to loudly so his mom wouldn't hear.  
  
"Son, your mom has been, well, involved in drugs for years." The police officer said. But Evan already knows this. What could be so bad that he needed to sit down for, when his life was already bad? And why did the police officer keep calling him 'son' like he was child?  
  
"Your mother has been illegally sneaking weapons, marijuana, cocaine, and a number of other illegal drugs into the state. This, and the fact that she has insulted a police officer to such a degree, means that we are forced to remove you and your brother from her custody."  
  
The police officer paused and waited for Evan's reaction. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. What did he and his brother do to deserve this? Doesn't she care about them? And what about Grace and Hannah? What is gonna happen to them? Evan was taking all this in and trying to understand what the officer had just told him. He felt like he was hyperventilating, but not. He got sort of dizzy, but the ground and the wall weren't moving. He could just feel it. He felt a lump in his throat. Then the officer spoke again.  
  
"You and your brother will be moved to an orphanage for young boys and girls. A married couple and their 3 children run the place. It is called St. Cuttlebone's Academy. You will receive a letter stating what time court will take place and when you will be placed under their care." He said.  
  
Evan still couldn't find his voice. He felt like he failed Jose. Even Hannah and Grace. They would have to go back to their home, without their mother, and will probably have to be sent the St. Cuttlebone's Academy too. Then Evan had a thought. He had to find his voice so he could mention it to the officer. He cleared his throat. "Uh, officer?" Evan said. "Yes?" the officer said. "I also have, um, 2 sisters who are under my mom's care, sir." He said.  
  
"Oh really? Is that so? I didn't see that in the record." He said. Uh-oh. He didn't want to put any more charges against his mom but, for Hannah and Grace's sake, he had to.  
  
"My mom would never let them go out of the house and she gave birth to them outside of the country, sir." He said, wincing.  
  
"Thank you for telling us that Mr. Wallace. I will add that to the list of charges for your mother and give them to the judge. What are your sister's names?" He asked.  
  
"Uh, Grace and Hannah." Said Evan. "And their ages?" the officer asked. "Grace is 12 and Hannah is 8." He said.  
  
"Alright, thank you." He said. The officer paused for a minute and then said, "Son? I am very sorry about your mother and the life that you will have to live without her."  
  
"Thank you officer." Evan said, feeling sick. Evan said good bye to the officer and came out of the bathroom. He handed his mother the phone.  
  
"What was that all about?" she asked. "Oh, I was just trying to help my friend figure out how to beat his new X-Box game." Evan said, saying what first came to mind. He walked into the bedroom and saw Grace fast asleep. Hannah and Jose were still playing their game. Evan decided to let them play and have fun, it might be their last day of real fun in their lives for awhile. Evan laid down on the floor with some blankets and told Jose and Hannah that they can share top bunk. Then Evan fell into an uneasy sleep, worrying about everything, still trying to except the fact that his mom had failed him and his brother, worrying about what would happen to the girls, worried about what this St. Cuttlebone's Academy would be like, and wondering what his mom would say when the letter arrived. 


	4. What do we do?

Grace woke up to Jose and Hannah playing PS2 again. Did they play all night? Evan was on the floor, sleeping sound. Grace decided not to wake him. How sweet! He could've woke her up to get off his bed, only, he didn't. Grace decided to lie in bed for awhile. She had to go to school today, in about 2 hours, and she just wanted to rest.  
  
Evan started stirring. He opened his eyes and saw Grace lying there, with her eyes open. "How'd you sleep?" Evan asked her. Grace jumped. She didn't realize he woke up.  
  
"Oh, ok." She said. "I didn't sleep good either." He said.  
  
"What was the phone call all about? You didn't get to come in last night before I fell asleep." Grace asked him. Evan hesitated. He'll have to tell her sooner or later, better be sooner.  
  
"Um, Grace? I have some bad news." He said, slowly. Grace's face looked worried. "What is it Evan?" she asked. Evan grabbed her arm and led her into the bathroom.  
  
"It's about my mom, Grace." She said. "Oh no! What's happened?" asked Grace. "First of all, she illegally changed our name from Wallace to Guillen." He said, wincing as he spoke. It was so hard for him to just tell her freely like this. But she had to know, and he would never lie to her.  
  
"You mean you've been Evan Wallace all this time?" she asked. Evan nodded. Then he continued. "My mom has also been illegally sneaking weapons and drugs into the state. And she has insulted a police officer, really bad." He said, about to cry.  
  
"When did all of this happen?" Grace asked in amazement.  
  
"Over the years." He said. "The officer that was on the phone with me said that we will be taken out of my mom's care." Evan said, tears rolling down his cheeks. "I was worried about you, so I told the officer that I have 2 sisters, I'm sorry." He went and sat down on the edge of the bathtub.  
  
"No, Evan. Don't ever think that I would be mad at you for making me go away too. I wouldn't want you to go away and not me. I'm glad you told that to the officer. I don't want to stay here alone, without you and Jose, without my mom, without....anything. At least, this way, I'm with you." She said.  
  
Evan got up and walked over to her and hugged her. "Oh Grace. Thank you so much for making it easier for me." He said. "But Evan. You have to make it easier for me too, you know. I'm going to have a really hard time telling Hannah." She said.  
  
"Grace? They said that we have to move to an orphanage called, 'St. Cuttlebone's Academy.'" He said. "We will get a letter soon, telling us when the court date is and when we will be moved." He said. And then suddenly, it hit Grace, so hard, like a bullet. They're gonna have to move. She started crying. Evan embraced her into a warm hug. They just stood there, hugging each other, for a long time. Then Mrs. Guillen called them, stopping the warmth of the hug.  
  
"Evan! Evan! Jose! Time to go to school. Get outta here!" she yelled.  
  
"Come on." Evan said. He grabbed her hand. They went into the bedroom and told Jose and Hannah that it was time for school. They all got their school stuff and headed out the front door of their crappy, worn down, trailer.  
  
Walking to School  
  
Evan and Grace were walking, hand in hand, watching Jose and Hannah skip along the sidewalk. They were competing, whoever could skip the most on one foot before they lost their balance, gets one point. And then they start again. Whoever gets the most points before they arrive at school, is the winner. Jose was ahead, 2 to 1.  
  
Grace was still teary-eyed. How was she going to tell Hannah?  
  
"Evan?" she asked.  
  
"What is it Grace?" he asked.  
  
"How am I gonna tell Hannah, and you tell Jose?" she asked.  
  
"Well, maybe we shouldn't tell them, I mean, maybe we should wait until the letter comes, and then they can find out for themselves. So they can have more happiness while they can." He said.  
  
That seemed like a good idea. Grace smiled and laid her head on his shoulder, to only be interrupted my Sally Carmichael. Sally came walking down the hill, with her friends. Grace lifted her head to look at them. They were all walking towards them, with their awfully tight clothes and their top-of-the-line brand name shoes.  
  
"Oh, looky what we have here. Two lovebirds about to make out." Said Sally. Her friends smirked. Grace didn't care, she liked Evan. She would not let Sally ruin her last drops of happiness. Sally walked off with her friends, swinging her hips and much as she could. She looked awful and fake, like a Barbie doll. Evan didn't even look at them, but Grace did notice that he gripped her hand more when Sally passed them. He was worried about her safety. Jose and Hannah were too far ahead of them to notice what happened. Evan looked down at her. Grace was starring straight ahead, like in a trance. She didn't sleep very well; she was tired.  
  
Jose and Hannah  
  
"So, what should we do? I'm sort of getting tired of skipping. I wish we could stay home and play PS2." Grace said. Jose nodded.  
  
Jose looked back at Evan and Grace. "Oooooh, they like each other." Jose said, and then he gasped.  
  
"Does that mean that we have to like each other? Eww!" said Jose. Hannah made a face. "Gross!" she said.  
  
"Oh look! It's Lizzie!" said Hannah. "Cool!" said Jose. Courtni Elizabeth is good friends with Jose and Hannah. And she has always liked Evan and Grace as big siblings. She's a real sweet- heart. She likes to be called Court, Courtni, Elizabeth, Lizzie, or Liz. But she hates if when people call her Courtni Elizabeth. Nobody knows why though. She is one of the only girls in this town with a good family. She has a brother named Timmy and parents. She also has a dog, named Sammy. Her mother and father have never smoked, drank, of have done drugs. Her parents liked the idea of spelling her name with an i instead of a ney. "Hi Court!" yelled Jose and Hannah  
  
"Look, Evan, it's Courtni!" said Grace. Evan looked at where Grace was pointing. Courtni was running towards Jose and Hannah. She waved at Evan and Grace and then started walking with Jose and Hannah.  
  
They arrived at school, only to be met with more misery... 


	5. College Guys

A gang of football college guys were walking towards the kids, staring at Jose and Hannah. Grace had seen them before, somewhere. She looked at Evan, he looked at her, and they sort of spoke to each other through their eyes because they both ran towards Jose and Hannah. The guys were faster.  
  
"Jose! Hannah! Courtni! Run to us..NOW!" Evan screamed. Courtni, Jose, and Hannah jumped. They took one look at the college guys and ran as fast as they could away from the men, towards the yelling Evan and Grace.  
  
Everything else just happened so fast, like a dream, going through your mind in an instant. First, one of the guys really runs fast and grabs Hannah's leg. She falls to the ground, hard, making a big gash on the side of her head. Blood was everywhere, fast.  
  
Jose screamed, "Hannah!"  
  
Courtni and Jose ran for Hannah and tried to get her but they couldn't in time. Evan and Grace ran for the guys. Evan jumped on top of one of the guys' back. He was thrown off like a rag doll. Grace jumped on top of one of the guys' back and poked him in the eyes, hard, and then got off of him in time. She kicked in between the legs, you know, and then hit a pressure point on his neck, which made him faint. She tried to do the same to another guy but he was to smart and he side- kicked her stomach and she flew backwards. She landed not far from where Evan was. Grace looked for him. She heard him yell. She turned her head, holding her stomach with pain all through her body, and saw Evan struggling with one of the men. He was kicking Evan and punching him. And then she saw Jose and Hannah getting beaten worse than that. She didn't know what do, who to help.  
  
And then Evan screamed, "Help Jose and Hannah! Leave me! I can take care of myself!" Grace felt torn. She didn't want Evan to get hurt, or Jose or Hannah and....where's Liz? (Courtni) Grace couldn't find her, anywhere. Grace ran to Jose and Hannah. They were crying. Hannah was dripping with blood from her head, her face, and her side. Jose was screaming, trying so hard to save Hannah.  
  
And then Grace saw Courtni, lying motionless on the ground. Grace grabbed Jose and practically threw him over to Elizabeth. He lay there. He was bleeding badly. "Leave my sister alone you bastd!" Grace screamed at the 2 guys who were beating Hannah. One of them nodded to the other one and the 'other one' started towards Grace. He reached her and grabbed her; he kissed her, and then threw her towards Evan who had the other guys unconscious. He ran to her. "Are you okay Grace?" he asked, sounding very worried. She shook her head and then pointed to Hannah, who was in a bloody heap on the ground. One guy, who looked like the leader, went over to Jose and kicked him hard in the middle of his back. "That'll teach ya, stupid Hispanic kid! And that goes for you too!" he yelled at Evan. Jose didn't even make a sound. Not a good sign. Evan silently started crying. Grace has never seen Evan cry before. Grace started crying too, not just because her back was killing her and her ankle might be broken and because of the kiss, but because of Evan. Jose and Hannah too.  
  
Are they going to die? 


	6. Waiting

Grace and Evan were in the Waiting Room at the hospital. The dumb doctors won't let them go in to see Jose, Hannah, or Courtni yet. Grace's ankle was only sprained, so the nurse but an ace-bandage on it. Evan was still crying. Grace was walking back and forth in front of him. When she saw that he was still crying she sat down next to him and hugged him. First the news from the police officer, now this. Evan feels like he has failed Jose twice.  
  
"What's going to happen to them Grace?" Evan asked, through sobs. Grace just shook her head and kept hugging him. Then Evan said, "I...uh...called my mom." Grace stopped hugging him and looked at him. "What'd she say?" she asked, not wanting to know the answer.  
  
Evan started crying harder.  
  
"It's ok Evan; you don't have to tell me now." Grace said.  
  
Evan shook his head. "It's not because I don't want you to know. It's just, I can't repeat what she said." Grace started crying too.  
  
15 minutes later  
  
The doctor came into the Waiting Room. He came up to Evan and Grace and said, "I, am uh, very sorry." Evan shook his head with terror on his face. "Your brother and your sister, " he said, pointing to Grace, "are in critical condition. Courtni is just fine. She just fainted from shock. Hannah has a very bad blade wound to her liver; eternal bleeding. And Jose has many bruises and his body may not be able heal it. He also could have brain damage, but we're not sure yet, we still have to take some tests an x-ray for broken bones and infection." He said.  
  
"Don't tell me that!" Evan yelled. He sat down on the chair.  
  
"Thank you, doctor." Grace said, walking towards Evan. She embraced him in a strong warm hug. She laid on his shoulder and they slept. They were exhausted.  
  
Half Hour Later  
  
Grace woke up and saw Evan talking to one of the doctors with a HUGE smile on his face. They shook hands and then Evan ran over to Grace and ran into her, hugging her. She almost fell over. But he held onto her. He picked her up. Grace already knew what this meant. Hannah and Jose were going to be ok.  
  
"The doctor said that they can leave the hospital in 3 days!" Evan exclaimed. Grace smiled at him. He looked so cute, smiling like that. They hugged each other again. Evan looked at Grace. He touched her face and was leaning down to her. He was just about to kiss her when the doctor called Evan's name.  
  
"Is there a," The doctor looked down to something in his hand, "uh, a Mr. Wallace here?" he asked. 


	7. The Letter

Evan walked over to the doctor. "This letter was dropped off here 1 minute ago by a woman. She said that she didn't care about it, whatever that means." The doctor said. The letter was already opened. Evan walked back to Grace. She read it silently over his shoulder,  
  
_Dear Mr. Evan D. Wallace,  
  
This letter concerns of when you will be moved to St. Cuttlebone's Academy. There will be no court date due to bad communication with other clients. You will be sent to St. Cuttlebone's Academy along with your brother and your two sisters. St. Cuttlebone's Academy resides in Houston, Texas. Please pack light-weight clothes for the weather is very hot. No cost for the One Way tickets.  
  
Someone will arrive at your house to escort you and your siblings to St. Cuttlebone's Academy on October 21st. Approximately 8:00 A.M. If you are not standing on your door step at 8 o'clock sharp then we will be forced to put you in the foster system permanently. Best Regards,  
  
The New York Police Department   
St. Cuttlebone's Academy_  
  
So much for the happiness Evan and Grace were having.  
  
"Evan." Grace said. "The 21st is tomorrow." She said. Evan looked scared. How were they going to explain that there was a terrible accident?  
  
"They probably won't like this." He said.  
  
"Why?" asked Grace.  
  
"Because they said that they 'will be forced to put us in the foster system permanently.'" He said, quoting the letter.  
  
Grace sighed. "Let's just play this by ear, uh, we can't do that! We have to figure something out now!" she said.  
  
"Ok, the doctors said that they needed to stay in the hospital for..3 more days?" Evan asked.  
  
"Yeah." Grace said.  
  
"Did he say why?" he asked.  
  
"No." Grace said.  
  
Five Minutes Later  
  
Evan was sleeping. Grace was walking down the hall.  
  
"Excuse me?" Grace said to the lady behind the desk.  
  
"Oh, Yes?" she asked. Her round, wire-rimmed glasses were way too big for her face and she had a wart on the end of her nose.  
  
"Could you look something up for me?" Grace asked.  
  
"Like what, deary?" she asked.  
  
"Well, friends are being taken care of in room 5, on this floor, and I was wondering, could you look up why their being kept here for 3 more days?" she asked  
  
The lady started typing on her computer and then stopped. "They are being kept, well...just because." She said.  
  
"What do you mean 'just because?'" she asked.  
  
"They are fine now, they are just here because." She said.  
  
"Thank you!" said Grace.  
  
In the Waiting Room  
  
"Evan! Evan, wake up!" Grace said, nudging Evan.  
  
"Uh. What?" he said. Grace explained to him everything that she talked about with the lady at the front desk.  
  
"Let's hide in the bathroom or something and then we can get them out. So we don't have to go to St. Cuttlebone's at all. We could just live on the streets." Grace said.  
  
Evan smiled. "Ok, let's hide now, it's really late so people are bound to not be around." He said.  
  
In the Girl's Bathroom  
  
Grace chose to hide in one of the stalls, lock the door, and stand on the toilet. At exactly 3:00 A.M. she and Evan would get the kids out. She could see the clock from here so she'll watch it until it's time.  
  
In the Boy's Bathroom  
  
Evan decided that he would hide behind the garbage can. It was big, so he couldn't be seen between the garbage can and the corner of the wall. He had his watch set to go off at 3:00 A.M. and then he would get Coutni, Jose, and Hannah out of here and far away from St. Cuttlebone's Academy's grasp. 


	8. Room 5

beep.....beep.....beep....beep.. Evan woke up to....a beeping sound? He didn't know what was going on. A fire alarm? And then he remembered, last night. He pressed a button on his watch, the beeping stopped, and he ran out from behind the garbage can. It almost fell over. He tip-toed as quit as he could outside of the bathroom, turning a corner until he got to the Girls bathroom. Where was Grace?  
  
Girls Bathroom  
  
Grace opened her eyes; she was very tired. She looked at the clock. She gasped. The clock said, 3:10. She got off the toilet and opened the lock on the stall door. She was just getting out of the stall when she ran right into Evan. They both fell backwards onto the floor.  
  
"Ow!" exclaimed Grace in a whisper. Evan got up faster than she did and helped her up.  
  
"What are you doing in here?" Grace asked, whispering.  
  
"I had to come get you; you weren't outside in the hall at 3, like a told you too." He whispered. Grace rolled her eyes. "Sorry, I fell asleep."  
  
"Obviously," he said, "we have to go, come on." He said. He grabbed Grace's hand and led her out into the hall.  
  
In the Hall  
  
Evan and Grace tip-toed around the hall, searching for room #5. Room 3, room 4, there it is! Room 5! They looked through the window on the door and saw 4 beds, 3 were with Courtni, Jose, and Hannah, and the other bed had what looked like a man lying in it, badly burned. Grace went over to Courtni and rubbed her back. (She was lying on her stomach.) She stirred and was about to talk when Grace put her finger to her lips.  
  
"Come on Courtni, we're going now." Grace said. She was about to ask why when Grace said, "Don't ask questions honey, we'll tell you what's going on once we get outside. Do not make a sound and come out with us quickly." Evan went to wake up Jose. He looked a lot better than a bloody heap, like he was before. Grace then went to Hannah.  
  
10 Minutes Later  
  
Grace, Evan, Jose, Hannah, and Courtni were out! They were running as fast as they could, out of the hospital. All of a sudden, Grace stopped running.  
  
She gasped. "Oh no!" she exclaimed. Evan ran to her and put his hands on her face. "What is it Grace?" he asked.  
  
"It's Courtni!" she said.  
  
"I'm right here." Courtni said, sweetly.  
  
"I know," Grace said slowly, "you can't, come...with us, Court." She looked down and nodded.  
  
"I know." She said sadly.  
  
"And we won't be able to write you letters or send you postcards because they'll be looking for us." Evan said. Courtni started crying. Jose looked at his feet. Evan and Grace looked at each other. Grace went over to Courtni and kneeled on one knee and looked into her beautiful hazel eyes. I tear fell down Grace's face.  
  
"Courtni. We will come back to see you, we promise. You just have to promise us one thing." Grace said.  
  
"What?" asked Courtni.  
  
"Promise, that whatever you do, don't tell anyone, about all of this, ok? You can tell them about the accident, but do not tell them about us sneaking out of the hospital ok?" Grace asked. Court nodded. "Ok, I promise!" she said through tears. And she hugged Grace so tight. Grace started crying again.  
  
"I love you so much Courtni! I will always love you. I will always remember you." Grace said.  
  
"I will too! Forever!" cried Court. Hannah pulled away from the hug so Jose could give her a hug. After they hugged, Grace heard Jose whisper something to Courtni, "Courtni...I love you." He said.  
  
Court looked at him. "I love you too, Jose." She said.  
  
Evan and Grace looked at each other. They both knew the 'I love you' that Jose and Court shared with each other was different than the 'I love you' that Court and Grace shared. This 'I love you' was real. A genuine 'I love you.' Not a sibling 'I love you.' Evan walked over to Grace.  
  
"Grace?" he asked. She looked at him. "You were so good with her. You made her understand that things are gonna be ok." He said. "And I love you for that." He said. This 'I love you' was exactly like the 'I love you' that Court and Jose shared. He leaned down to her, (he is about 5 inches taller than her) and he kissed her. It was the kiss that he was going to give her earlier at the hospital.  
  
Everyone else stopped crying and hugging to look them. Evan and Grace didn't care. When they were done, Hannah giggled. But Jose and Court didn't. Instead, they were staring at each other. Are they going to kiss? 


	9. The Police

Jose and Courtni were staring at each other. Then they both started crying. They hugged each other so tight.  
  
"Grace," Evan said, "we better go, look." He pointed to the hospital. People were running around and making a lot of racket.  
  
"I love you Courtni." Grace and Evan said. Everyone hugged each other in a group hug. That was the last group hug they would have in a long time..  
  
Grace, Hannah, Evan, and Jose  
  
All 4 kids were running through the woods, staying on the road would be too risky.  
  
"Do you think Court will get home ok?" she asked.  
  
"Honey, her house was right across the street from where we were at." Evan said.  
  
"Right." She said, unconvinced. "B-B-But do you think she'll tell?" she asked, nervously.  
  
"She promised she wouldn't tell Grace. She knows that if she does than she probably won't ever she us again." Evan said.  
  
"Right." She said. "D-D-Do you think her parents will be mad? What about the police? What about money? We sure don't have enough. How are we gonna survive? What are we gonna do?" Grace was talking a mile an hour.  
  
"Grace." Said Evan. He stopped in front of her and put his hands on her shoulders. "Relax. Breath. Look at me. Do I look like I won't help you? Like I won't support you? Do I look like I don't care?" he asked.  
  
Grace smiled. "Alright, I'm just overreacting. She'll be fine; we'll be fine." She said nodding her head.  
  
"That a girl." He said. Just then, the kids heard police sirens, very close, too close.  
  
"Duck!" Evan whispered. All of the kids ducked except for Evan, who kneeled. He needed to get a look at where the police cars were heading. They were..4 cars?! Jeez. They were 2 men per car! They all got out and started searching the area. Evan heard someone over one of the men's radio say, "Please note that these are teenage children we are dealing with, could be armed and dangerous. Could be anywhere, over." A female officer said this.  
  
One of the officers picked up his walkie-talkie and said, "Copy that, we have 4 kids' footsteps leading into the woods, over." Evan ducked.  
  
Should they run? Should they stay there and hope that no one will come there?  
  
"Guys, be very quiet, don't make a sound. Go that way and I'll follow. We have to get out of the other side of the woods. They're looking for us." He said.  
  
Jose and Hannah had terrified looks on their faces. "Are they gonna kill us Ev?" asked Jose.  
  
"No lil bro. If they catch us, we'll be sent to jail. For a long time." Jose gasped. Hannah just kept running. She hated the cops more than anything! And she still doesn't know why.  
  
"Evan." Said Grace in a very worried tone.  
  
"I know, Grace, I know." He said. They kept running. They heard the cops running faster after them.  
  
"They know that we're running." Said Evan. We might as well stop." Evan said.  
  
Everybody stopped and waited. The police officer was holding a struggling young child. A girl! Courtni! 


	10. In Court

"What? Court? What are you doing?" asked Jose.  
  
"I-I-Well-The-They caught me." She said.  
  
"B-B-But you didn't do anything wrong." Said Evan  
  
"I know. But I was out of the hospital." She said. "They got Timmy too." She said.  
  
"No!" said Hannah.  
  
Court nodded. "My parents and Tim went out of the house to get me and then the police grabbed me and Timmy and told my parents a whole bunch of bad things that I did and that it was Timmy's fault too. My parents are in one of the police cars now." She said all of this very fast.  
  
"Where's Timmy now?" asked Hannah "In a different police car" said Coutni.  
  
"Come on kids, its ok. Take it easy, we're not gonna hurt you." Said the police officer holding Court.  
  
"My name is Officer Jason Bates." He said. "Let's just get into the car, with no struggles ok?" he asked.  
  
Hannah shook her head. "Come on little girl." He said. She shook her head again. Evan looked at Grace and gave her the eye. She understood that it meant to be quiet. The police officer led them into separate cars and drove them to the police station.  
  
One Day Later  
  
Jose, Evan, Hannah, Grace, Timmy, and Court were all sitting on chairs in the courtroom. Court and Timmy's parents were crying. Mrs. Guillen/Wallace didn't even show. She was probably taken to jail. Grace felt so sorry for Evan and Jose. Their own mother doesn't even show up at court to support them.  
  
"Mr. and Mrs. Pearl?" the lady judge asked. Courtni and Timmy's parents stood up.  
  
"Yes, your honor?" asked Mr. Pearl.  
  
"Do you realize the consequences for such actions that your children have committed sir?" Judge Judi Moore asked. "With all due respect, your honor, I don't believe that my children would do such a thing to the community." Mr. Pearl said.  
  
"What are you trying to say Mr. Pearl?" the judge asked.  
  
"Well, my children are only 8 years of age and are physically incapable of breaking into the local hospital and kidnapping 2 kids." Said Mr. Pearl  
  
"With all due respect, with the help of Evan Wallace and Grace Stansburry, and possibly others, it doesn't seem so physically impossible, now, does it Mr. Pearl?" Judi Moore had a poisoning look on her face like she was set out to put Mr. Pearl behind bars as well.  
  
"You may be seated now." She said to Mr. Pearl. He didn't move.  
  
"I don't believe that Evan and Grace did it either, you honor." He said. Wow! He was risking his freedom for Evan and Grace too.  
  
"Silence! You may be seated now, Mr. Pearl." She said, with her teethe bared. Mr. Pearl was about to speak again when Mrs. Pearl grabbed his hand and shook her head. "Don't." she whispered.  
  
"Now, for breaking into the hospital, for kidnapping 2 kids, for destruction of hospital property, for disturbance of peace, and for not arriving at St. Cuttlebone's Academy, Mr. Evan D. Wallace and Miss Grace M. Stansburry will be sentenced to 18 months at a Juvenile Correctional Facility." Judge Moore said, loving every word of it.  
  
"And for going along with the drama, Mr. Jose C. Wallace, Miss Hannah R. Stansburry, Mr. Timmy L. Pearl, and Miss Courtni Elizabeth M. Pearl are sentenced to 18 months at the same Juvenile Correctional Facility." She said.  
  
"Does this so-called Juvenile Correctional Facility got a name?" asked Evan, rudely.  
  
"Yes, as a matter of fact, it does Mr. Wallace. Camp Green Lake. And believe me, your not gonna like the lake." She said. Mr. and Mrs. Pearl started crying.  
  
"What? We don't even get a choice between jail or a Juvenile Correctional Facility?" asked Grace.  
  
"No, Miss Stansburry, you don't." Judge Moore said, coldly, yet happily. "Court dismissed." She said.  
  
One the bus  
  
"I can't believe this! How can that witch of a woman, what's her face...Judi Moore get away with this?" yelled Grace, walking back and forth on the hallway of the bus that's taking them to Camp Green Lake.  
  
"I know, Grace, but there's nothing we can do about it now." Said Evan. Hannah, Jose, Court, and Timmy fell asleep on the drive. They have been driving for about 8 hours and they're still not even close to arriving. They flew on a plane to Texas and are now driving to Green Lake. Grace sat down on one of the seats in the bus and started crying. Evan walked over from his spot in the bus and sat next to her.  
  
"We'll get through this together, Grace. I promise you." Evan said, putting his arm around her shoulders. Grace just cried into his shoulder. He started stroking her hair. Grace fell into an uneasy sleep on Evan's shoulder.  
  
Arrival  
  
The bus stopped abruptly. Grace jumped up, surprised, and then she looked out the window. She saw a lot of boys walking in long sleeve orange jumpsuits into the camp. Holding...shovels? Every boy looked badly burned, exhausted, and hungry. There was no green whatsoever. And no lake. It didn't look like much of a camp either. It looked more like a ghost town full of sand. Grace saw only one girl, with a sleeveless orange jumpsuit, holding hands with a boy, walking to camp from the desert. 


	11. Welcome to Camp Green Lake

Evan, Jose, Grace, Hannah, Courtni, and Timmy all got off of the bus. Everything in sight had sand on it, even the boys. One boy had glasses that were dirtier than his clothes! There were holes everywhere. Evan looked around and saw a tarantula. He sort of quickened his pace. And then a man started walking over to them.  
  
"Hello, welcome to Camp Green Lake. " he said. "My name is Mr. Pendanski and I will be your counselor while you're at camp." he said, smiling.  
  
"Hello." the kids said.  
  
"If you would follow me please and we'll go get your jumpsuits." he said. And he led them to a small cabin.  
  
They walked in a saw a man sitting behind a desk with his feet resting upon it. He had a cowboy hat and boots, and was chewing ALOT of sunflower seeds that he was spitting out very impolitely.  
  
"You're late." he said, dully.  
  
Evan was about to talk when he spoke.  
  
"My name is Mr. Sir, when you speak to me you shall call me by my name is that clear?" he asked.  
  
Courtni and Jose giggled.  
  
"Think my name's funny do you? Well, you won't think it's funny when you find out what your punishments are gonna be while you're at Camp Green Lake." he said.  
  
The kids automatically stopped laughing. They just remembered that they're here for a bad reason.  
  
"Now, you need to listen to me and take me seriously! Understood!?" he yelled.  
  
Everyone jumped at his loud voice and then nodded.  
  
"That's better." he said.  
  
"Now here at Camp Green Lake, there are certain, uh, let's see, guild-lines that you have to follow." he said  
  
"You will dig 1 hole everyday to build character." he continued. "You will not complain or wine because everyone here is doing the exact same thing you are supposed to be doing. And I don't hear them complaining. Do you?" he said.  
  
All 6 kids shook their heads.  
  
"That' right. Of course, you will dig your holes with shovels," Grace almost rolled her eyes, but thought better of it "and they will be your measuring sticks." he said. "You will wake up everyday at 4:30 A.M. to have your breakfast. If you wake up late, you miss breakfast and you will not get to eat until the afternoon when the water truck comes and gives you water and lunch. Then you will come back to camp, take a shower, eat dinner, and go to bed. Of course, before you go to bed, you get to 'hang out' or whatever you girl scouts call it, at the Wreck Room."  
  
Grace was offended, she was a girl.  
  
Evan looked at her and gave her a look like "I know, I understand, he's a jerk."  
  
Mr. Sir gave them all 2 pairs of ugly orange jumpsuits and 1 canteen each. The girls got sleeve-less and the boys got long sleeve jumpsuits.  
  
"Put on a pair and use the other pair for relaxation. Put your dirty jumpsuits in your crate when you're finished with your shower so laundry can be done. And please remember that we are not responsible for clothes that don't get washed because you girl scouts forgot to put them in the crate!" he said, rudely. He knew that Grace didn't like it when he called her a girl scout.  
  
"Where do we sleep?" asked Evan.  
  
"Well, I suppose, in a tent, maybe?" he asked, sarcastically.  
  
Evan narrowed his eyes.  
  
"You will sleep in tent D." he said.  
  
Mr. Sir smiled. "Run along now, and go do what girl scouts do." he said, sniggering. "You will dig your first hole tomorrow. If you're hurry, you won't be late for dinner at the Mess Hall, like you probably always are with everything."  
  
Grace shivered; she could tell that they were NOT going to get along while she was at Camp Green Lake.  
  
The Mess Hall  
  
Jose, Hannah, Courtni, and Timmy wanted to sit in the corner, away from the D-Tent boys. They scared them. But the boys wanted Evan and Grace to sit with them. So the 4 young kids thought that it was ok to be left alone for awhile.  
  
"Come sit of here!" said a black kid with extremely dirty glasses. He was sitting at the D-Tent table.  
  
Evan and Grace walked over to them. Evan stayed close to Grace like he was worried about her. Grace was happy that he wanted to protect her.  
  
"Hello, my name is X-Ray." the black kid said.  
  
"And this is Squid, "he said, pointing to a very good looking boy, probably about 12 years old. "What's up?" he said.  
  
"This is Charm." X-Ray said, pointing to a girl sitting next to Squid, about the same age as Squid.  
  
"Hi!' she said and waved.  
  
That was the girl that Grace saw holding hands with a boy. But who was the boy?  
  
"She's Squid's girlfriend." X-Ray said. Right away, Grace's question was answered when she saw Squid and Charm grab each other's hand  
  
"This is Armpit." he said, pointing to an overweight black 14 year old.  
  
"Wut up dawg?" Armpit said.  
  
"This is Caveman." X-Ray said, pointing to a handsome tall 14 year old. "Hey guys, welcome to Camp Green Lake." he said, politely.  
  
Grace smiled. "Thanks." Evan said.  
  
"And this is Zero." X-Ray said. Zero said nothing and didn't even look up.  
  
"Hi." said Grace.  
  
Zero looked up said, "Hello."  
  
"Then who's that?" asked Evan, pointing to a very tall 14 year old boy with really wild blonde hair.  
  
"Oh, that's Zig-Zag." said X-Ray. "We forget about him alot because he's X- Ray twirled his finger and pointed to his own head. "crazy." he whispered.  
  
"Nice to meet all of you." said Grace.  
  
"Yeah." said Evan.  
  
When Evan and Grace were just about finished with their horrible baloney and beans, X-Ray asked, "What did you guys do?"  
  
At first, Grace and Evan didn't know what he was talking about.  
  
"Oh, we-we got set up." Evan said.  
  
"By who?" asked Squid.  
  
"The cops." he said.  
  
"Well, obviously, they were the ones who sent ya here....of course the cops set you up. They set everyone up. What really happened?" X-Ray said.  
  
Evan and Grace took turns telling everyone the whole story about how they got here, starting with the phone call from the police officer and ending with the bus ride to Camp Green Lake.  
  
"Wow." said Charm.  
  
"Oh...oh....oh....I bet.....those cops were the parents of your evil twins sent from Africa to destroy your lives!!" exclaimed Zig-Zag.  
  
"I totally doubt it man." said Squid.  
  
"See man, I told ya he was wacko." said X-Ray.  
  
Zero laughed and said, "Zig, you're crazy!  
  
Everyone looked up at him.  
  
"Well....why is everyone so quiet?" asked Grace.  
  
"Listen, Grace. Zero never talks, to anybody, not a word comes out of that mouth of his. Zig-Zag even had us convinced that he was a mute. But Zero just laughed and talked. Like I said, he never makes a sound. So, we're quiet because we've never heard his voice and you started the conversation that made him laugh." said X-Ray.  
  
"Ooooooooo, maybe you're the evil twins and you're here to melt our brains to goo!" said Zig-Zag.  
  
"Man! Shut-up!" said Charm.  
  
"Well, why should that be so special that I made Zero talk?" Grace asked.  
  
Zero smiled and looked down, happy with what she just said. She was sticking up for him.  
  
"Yeah." said Evan.  
  
Zero smiled even wider.  
  
"Whatever. You don't get it." said X-Ray.  
  
"Don't talk that way to them!" yelled Charm.  
  
Everyone stopped arguing and laughing instantly. Squid nodded and smiled like he was proud of the way Charm spoke up and defended Evan and Grace.  
  
X-Ray and Armpit made a face like they were mad at Squid for agreeing with Charm.  
  
Grace just realized that her sentence here at Camp Green Lake was going to be long and miserable. 


	12. Libby and Adam

2 young kids came up to Evan, Grace, Jose, Hannah, Courtni, and Timmy after dinner at the Mess Hall. A girl and a boy.  
  
"Hey," said the girl, "My name is Libby."  
  
"Yeah, and my name is Adam." said the boy.  
  
"We're twins; we're both 8 years old. We don't have nicknames yet." said Libby.  
  
"Hi." The 6 kids said.  
  
"We're from A-Tent. Where are you from?" asked Adam.  
  
"We're all in D-Tent." said Evan.  
  
"Cool. Wanna play? There's a cool pile of dust over there behind C-Tent that we play on all the time." asked Libby  
  
"Can we go Evan?" asked Jose.  
  
"Yeah, can we Grace?" asked Hannah.  
  
Courtni and Timmy just sat there.  
  
"Sure. We'll be at D-Tent if you need to know where we are." said Evan.  
  
"Yes!" said Jose, and they all went to play with Libby and Adam.  
  
D-Tent  
  
Evan and Grace walked in to the tent.  
  
X-Ray and Armpit were deep into a private conversation. When Grace and Evan came in, they suddenly stopped.  
  
Squid and Charm were talking to each other on one of the cots.  
  
Zero and Caveman were writing letters on a piece of paper.  
  
Zig-Zag was closely examining Grace's backpack and opening all of the zippers. Everything fell out onto the floor. Everybody started laughing and pointing at Grace when her underwear fell out of the pack.  
  
"Oooo, hahahahaha!!!! I see London, I see France...I see Grace's underpants!!!" yelled X-Ray and Armpit, along with Zig-Zag.  
  
Grace looked very embarrassed.  
  
Evan ran over to Zig-Zag and said, "What do you think you're doing? You don't look into someone's backpack like that!"  
  
"Well, I was looking for evidence of evil from an outside planet." he said.  
  
"What?" said Evan.  
  
Then Evan walked over to her stuff and started putting everything back.  
  
Zero and Caveman walked over to help.  
  
Squid walked over to Zig and asked, "Did you know that it's rude to look into someone's bag and dump it all on the floor? Even if you think that they're evil? Did that little detail cross through your brain?"  
  
Zig-Zag looked like he didn't care about anything. So he walked off and went to the Wreck Room.  
  
Charm walked up to Grace and said, "Hey. Don't worry. It's doesn't matter. They don't care. Ziggy did the same thing to me when I came. Actually, I'm really glad that I'm not the only girl around here anymore. If you want to talk, I'm here ok? For a girl's point of view." she said.  
  
"Oh...thank you Charm." Grace said, smiling. But she still had tears streaming down her cheeks.  
  
Squid, Caveman, and Zero all came to Grace. "Sorry Grace." they said.  
  
Armpit and X-Ray thought all of this was funny. Everyone ignored the 2 of them.  
  
Evan came up to Grace and put his hands on her face. He wiped the tears off.  
  
"Hey....don't even think on this for one minute ok? I didn't laugh. I never will, because I care about you Grace." he said.  
  
Grace hugged him and they both walked out.  
  
Zero and Caveman started to follow them but Charm stopped them.  
  
"Hey. This is the time where they want to be alone. I know this stuff; I wanted to be alone with Squid when we first started dating. But now, I don't care. That will soon happen with them, just give then a little time." she said.  
  
Zero and Caveman listened and went back to their paper and started writing the ABC's again.  
  
Evan and Grace  
  
Evan led Grace out of the tent.  
  
"Are you ok?" he asked. She nodded.  
  
"Good. I'm sorry about all of that Grace." he said.  
  
"Well....it's not your fault!!!" she yelled at him, smiling at the same time. It probably looked funny to anyone watching them. Some girl smiling and yelling at the same time, she sounded serious, but she was smiling. That would look pretty funny.  
  
Evan laughed.  
  
Then Grace laughed with him.  
  
"Grace?" Evan asked.  
  
"What?"  
  
"We should go to sleep, you know, we need our rest to dig out holes tomorrow." he said  
  
"Oh, right." she said.  
  
Evan grabbed her hand and they walked to the dust hill that Libby and Adam were talking about.  
  
Dust Hill  
  
All 6 kids were playing on the hill. They all looked filthy.  
  
"Come on guys! We have to go now." Evan called.  
  
"Awww man! How come?" asked Jose.  
  
"We have to go to bed. Don't forget that we have to dig a hole tomorrow." said Evan.  
  
"Okay." Jose said and Courtni, Timmy, and Hannah followed Jose to Evan and Grace.  
  
"Bye!" called Libby and Adam.  
  
"Bye!" the kids said back.  
  
"Hey, Evan." Jose said as all the kids were walking back to D-Tent.  
  
"What?" Evan said.  
  
"I like them. They're really nice." he said.  
  
"Well, that's cool lil' bro." Evan said.  
  
"Evan?" he asked.  
  
"What?" Evan asked.  
  
"Do we really have to dig.....holes? It seems really weird to dig holes." he said.  
  
"We really do, Jose." he said. 


	13. Years Passed

A very loud horn blasted and made Grace jump and fall off her bed. She heard someone laugh. She looked up and saw Zig-Zag, Armpit, and X-Ray standing there....laughing.  
  
"Oh...Shut-up!" she said.  
  
They stopped instantly. They didn't expect her to talk back like that. One day, I'll get them....bad. They'll never treat me bad again. Grace thought to herself.  
  
Evan walked over and gave them the evil eye and helped Grace to her feet.  
  
"Are you okay?" he asked.  
  
She nodded.  
  
"Guess what?" he asked her.  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"Timmy, Courtni, Jose, and Hannah have already started their hole." he said.  
  
"What do you mean?" she asked.  
  
"Mr. Pendanski said that they could start earlier so they didn't have to be out in the sun all day." he said.  
  
"Really? I'm surprised." she said.  
  
"I know! Well, hopefully they can do that every morning." he said.  
  
"Yeah." she said and Evan kissed her on her forehead.  
  
"Everything's going to be alright." he said.  
  
She smiled. She loved feeling the comfort and security from Evan. He was so sweet to her all the time.  
  
Evan and Grace walked out of the tent, hand in hand, to eat their breakfast. All of the D-Tent boys were there already, yawning and stretching. Squid had his arm around Charm's shoulder.  
  
The food was a disgusting looking tortilla, dripping in grease.  
  
Evan handed her a tortilla. Grace held out a hand.  
  
"Uh, she clears her throat I think I'll pass on this, thanks." she said.  
  
"Me too." Evan said.  
  
Evan and Grace saw the 4 younger kids coming back from digging their hole.  
  
"Hey kids! How was your hole?" Evan asked them.  
  
Jose shook his head, they were all breathing hard.  
  
Evan nodded.  
  
"We're in for a long day, Grace." he said.  
  
Grace sighed and reached for a shovel from the shed. She looked up and saw "Library" written at the top.  
  
Just then, Grace was pushed hard onto the ground. She landed on her wrist and it felt like she pulled a muscle.  
  
"Aaah." she said. Dirt went in her eyes and nose. She sneezed.  
  
Then next thing she knew, Evan was standing smack dab in front of X-Ray, his face right up in X's.  
  
"Who do you think you are?" Evan yelled.  
  
"Uh, I believe my name is X-Ray." X said.  
  
Evan pushed X-Ray, making him almost fall to the ground.  
  
Grace jumped up and ran to Evan, standing between him and X-Ray. She grabbed his hand and pulled him away from X-Ray.  
  
"Evan. I appreciate it when you stick up for me, but not when it has something to do with you getting hurt." she said.  
  
He nodded and smiled.  
  
"I just hate it when people try to hurt or embarrass you. You're dealing with enough already." he said.  
  
"Thank you Evan." she said. By now, everyone was staring at them.  
  
"Grace. You never want to take X-Ray's shovel. It's smaller than all of the other shovels." Magnet said, sweetly.  
  
Then Squid came up to Grace. "Smaller shovel.....smaller hole." he said, smiling. Evan gave him the look.  
  
X-Ray threw a shovel down at her feet. Evan picked it up and gave it to Grace. Then Mr. Pendanski started talking.  
  
"Everybody have their shovels? Alright, then get to work." he said.  
  
Evan and Grace looked confused.  
  
"And for those of you who have no clue whatsoever about where and how to dig your hole, listen up!" he said.  
  
"Follow these campers," he said, pointing to all if the D-Tent boys," because they will show you where to dig. Now, you grab your shovel, stick it in the ground, and pull up on the shaft. You will then have a pile of dirt inside the shovel. Dump that somewhere outside your hole and repeat the process." he said.  
  
X-Ray and Armpit thought it was funny how Mr. P. made Evan and Grace look stupid.  
  
Squid and Charm looked mad. So did Caveman and Zero. Zig-Zag was just looking around frantically for any lizards, tarantulas, or scorpions.  
  
"Any questions?" he asked, trying to act like a real counselor.  
  
Evan and Grace shook their heads and started following the other boys and girl.  
  
The Hole  
  
They had to walk a long way. They were still walking when the sun started rising.  
  
"Hey....Grace!" Squid called as he started walking over to her, with Charm.  
  
"I'm sorry about back there. They're jerks. He did that to me and Charm when we first came here." he said.  
  
"Oh...thanks Squid." she said.  
  
Caveman and Zero said the same thing. "If you guys need any help, me and Zero will be happy to show you." Caveman said. Zero nodded.  
  
"Thanks guys." she said. They started walking back towards Squid and Charm.  
  
"Actually........Zero! Caveman!" Grace called.  
  
"Yeah?" Zero asked.  
  
"Uh...well...how hard was it to dig your first hole?" she asked.  
  
"It gets easier." Zero said.  
  
"I guess that means it's hard to dig?" Grace asked Evan after Zero and Caveman left.  
  
"Yeah I guess so." he said.  
  
Time passed. Everybody got older. Hannah and Timmy ended up liking each other. For some reason, their sentence at Camp Green Lake didn't last long and they got to go home. They are now living at Timmy's house with his parents.  
  
But Courtni.......she had to stay 4 years longer, along with Evan, Grace, and Jose.  
  
The Warden made them stay longer. Who knows why.  
  
Now, Evan and Grace are 16 years old. Courtni and Jose are 13 years old. Squid and Charm just celebrated their 16th birthday together, even if their birthdays are 1 week apart. X-Ray, Armpit, Caveman, and Zig-Zag are 18 years old. Zero is 16.  
  
4 Years Later   
  
Evan and Grace were once again out on the dry wasteland. Digging their hole for the umpteenth time. Zero was still the fastest digger of all, but Grace and Evan were getting pretty good. They were already digging faster than all of the other D-Tent campers.  
  
Now, X-Ray wasn't so tough. He was the slowest digger. He wasn't even the leader of the tent anymore.  
  
Evan was... 


	14. Friday Nights

Now, Evan is the Leader of the group. He is starting to make Camp Green Lake a happier place to be. No more standing in a certain order to get water, no more fighting, and now X-Ray and Armpit don't even THINK about picking a fight with Grace.  
  
"Hey Grace." Evan said, walking into the Mess Hall to eat dinner.  
  
"Hi!" she said. "Where's Jose?" she asked.  
  
"I think he's over there eating with Courtni." He said. Grace smiled. She knew that they like each other now.  
  
"Grace, I was thinking." He said.  
  
"Yeah?" she said.  
  
"I was thinking that, maybe, I dunno, maybe everyone could go to some kind of dance on Friday nights, after we dig our hole." He said.  
  
"Ooooo, that sounds cool. But, what about music?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, Zig-Zag's got that covered." He said. Grace nodded.  
  
"It's a brilliant idea!" she said.  
  
"Yeah?" he asked, smiling. Grace nodded. "Where will you host it though?" Grace asked.  
  
"Oh, probably in the Wreck Room. We could just clear away all the junk and the couches and stuff." He said.  
  
"Okay. Sounds great!" she said. "Evan!!" Grace exclaimed.  
  
"What?!" he asked, sounding worried.  
  
"Oh, no it's nothing like that. I'm fine. It's just..why haven't we gotten nicknames yet?" she asked. "Oooo, I dunno Grace. Maybe it's because I'm leader now and X-Ray won't name you. Maybe the leader is supposed to name you." He said.  
  
"Oh." She said. Evan nodded.  
  
"I'll think of something for you ok?" he asked. "Oh, no, you don't have too. I was just confused. Everyone has nicknames except for me and you." She said.  
  
"No. I want to name you something." He said.  
  
"Okay." She said.  
  
"Who will name you then?" she asked.  
  
"You can." Evan said smiling.  
  
Friday Night: Time for the first dance.   
  
Over the past years that Grace, Evan, Jose, and Courtni were at Camp Green Lake, more girls arrived. It seems that the Warden at the girls' camp got fired and no one else wanted the job. So, more and more girls are arriving at Camp Green Lake. All of the D-Tent boys have girlfriends. Squid and Charm are really doing good together and Squid's attitude has improved. He's not hanging out with X-Ray or Armpit anymore. Magnet and Courtni are now boyfriend and girlfriend. He is so sweet to her. X-Ray and Armpit fell in love with twins. And Zig-Zag thinks that ALL girls are too suspicious to be with. So he obviously doesn't have a girlfriend. Zero likes this girl from Morocco, but he's too shy to let her know. And Caveman, he likes a girl and just recently let her know. He will be going to the dance with her.  
  
"Hey Grace!" said Evan.  
  
"Hi Evan!" she said.  
  
"How was digging your hole today? I saw you, but you got to camp sooner than me." He said.  
  
"Fine, it's getting better now that my hands are all tough." She said.  
  
"Good...good." he said. After a long silence, Evan spoke up, "Grace? Do you want to go to the dance with me tonight?" he asked. Grace smiled.  
  
"I wouldn't go with anyone else!" she said. "Okay." He said. "Want to go to the Wreck Room and play some pool? We have 1 hour before we go to the dance." he said.  
  
"Sure!" Grace said.  
  
1 Hour Later  
  
"Okay, let's go." Evan said. "Kay." She said.  
  
The first dance was a slow one. Grace was glad, because she doesn't like up-beat dances. She doesn't like to dance in front of people, only slow- dancing. Evan put his hands on Grace's waist and Grace put hers on his shoulders.  
  
"So...." Evan said, "when do you think that we'll get out of here?" he asked.  
  
"I dunno. You never know after what happened with Timmy and Hannah..Oh, I hope they're alright." She said, worried.  
  
"They'll be fine." He said. "They're at Timmy and Courtni's house, remember?" he asked.  
  
"Oh, that's right." She said. "Can I cut in?" Grace heard a voice behind her. It was Caveman.  
  
"Oh..sure. I'll go get us some fruit-punch okay?" said Evan. Grace nodded and started dancing with Caveman.  
  
"Hi." She said.  
  
"Hey." He said.  
  
"Where's your date? Olivia is it?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah, she dumped me right when we started dancing and went to dance with someone else." He said.  
  
"Oh, I'm sorry. Now why would she do that?!" Grace exclaimed. Caveman laughed.  
  
"No, I'm serious!" said Grace. "Who would dump a great guy like you?" she asked.  
  
Caveman shook his head, still smiling. "I dunno. She went to dance with Brian." He said.  
  
"Oh, that twitchy dude?" asked Grace.  
  
"Yeah." He said. Grace shook her head.  
  
"It's okay. I never really felt right with her anyway." Caveman said. Grace smiled. Grace saw Evan sitting on the couch, watching them. He smiled and waved. Grace smiled back. He didn't seem too bothered by Caveman interrupting, so Grace decided to dance with him longer, just so he won't be sitting there alone, with no girl.  
  
"So, how's Zero? He never talks to me." Grace said, trying to start a conversation. It seemed too awkward, just dancing there saying nothing.  
  
"He's good. Yeah, he never talks unless he gets used to you. He talks to me all the time!" he said.  
  
"That's good." Grace said, nodding.  
  
"I'm teaching him how to read." He said.  
  
"Oh! That's great! I didn't know that he didn't know how to read! That's so sad. I bet people make fun of him a lot." He said.  
  
Caveman nodded. "Yeah, he told me that X-Ray and Armpit did all the time. But ever since Evan became leader, he's been fine!" he said.  
  
Grace smiled. She's so proud of Evan. After some silence Caveman looked down at Grace.  
  
"Grace?" he asked.  
  
"Yeah?" she asked  
  
"Can I tell you something? I haven't ever told anyone this before." He said.  
  
"Sure. Anything Caveman."  
  
"Uh, I just wanted you to know that I'm proud of you." He said.  
  
"Really?" she asked. "Why?"  
  
"For putting up with everything that's happened over these past years and for being so nice to everyone, even your enemies." He said.  
  
What is he leading up to? Grace thought.  
  
"And I just want to say, that..I love you." He said. 


	15. Caveman

Grace was stunned. She stopped dancing and just stood there looking into Caveman's eyes. They looked sincere. "W-W-What?" Grace stuttered.  
  
"I love you, Grace. I did the very minute that you started getting picked on." He said.  
  
"Oh, so you pitied me!" she said, rudely.  
  
"No, no, no." he said, shaking his head. "I just love you because you're so sweet and kind to everyone. I dunno. I just...do." he said.  
  
Wow, he sure can speak his mind without feeling shy. Grace thought. "W-W-Well, uh, clears throat I dunno what to say right about now." She said. "You don't have to say anything, I was stupid to say this to you when I know that you're Evan's girl." He said, looking down.  
  
"No! No, that's not it at all! I'm not Evan's girl. I don't like being called someone's girl because it makes me feel like cattle." She said, sternly.  
  
"Sorry." Caveman said.  
  
"It's okay." She said. "I still don't know what to say." She said. "I mean..., " Grace hated to have to tell Caveman that she really was Evan's girl. That her heart belonged to him.  
  
"You're just such a beautiful young lady, Grace. I think that you are very intelligent, strong, and confident. You believe in yourself, and that's what I love about you. When I'm around you, I just, feel strong, inside, and I feel like I don't have to be someone else to be noticed. I feel like you will believe in me, as Stanley, not as Caveman. I am Stanley. And you make me feel like I don't need a nickname to be accepted in this world. Especially the world of Camp Green Lake." He said.  
  
Oh my gosh, Grace thought. Grace's mouth was slightly open and she started crying, silently, so only Stanley would know.  
  
"Stanley." She said, looking into those beautiful eyes. She hugged him. She knew that she just couldn't be with him. It would hurt Evan too much. But then, she'd eventually have to hurt one of them. She did not ever want to tell Stanley that her heart belongs with Evan. She just, couldn't.  
  
"I-I-I." Grace couldn't tell him.  
  
"Shhhhh." Said Stanley, quietly. "Just stop crying, keep dancing with me, and we'll talk about this later ok?" he asked.  
  
She nodded.  
  
Oh, he is so sweet. And romanitc. He knows that I will have to tell him and he knows how hard it is for me. He's giving me time. she thought. She hugged him and they continued dancing.  
  
5 Days Later  
  
After what happened that night at the dance, Grace felt different. Stanley hadn't brought it up at all since then and Grace was glad. She was happy for the time she had to think about it.  
  
Grace had to tell Caveman. She looked for him everywhere and then found him in D-Tent, teaching Zero how to read.  
  
"Hi guys!" she said.  
  
"Hey." Said Caveman.  
  
"Hi Zero." Grace said. He looked up at her and said,  
  
"Hi." He smiled. Grace smiled back, he's such a cutie.  
  
"Uh, Caveman, can I talk to you?" she asked.  
  
"Yeah. Zero, just continue writing all of the 3 letter words that you can think of that has the letter "A" in the middle okay?" he asked Zero nodded and started writing on the paper that Stanley had there.  
  
"You're a good teacher." Grace said to Caveman when they were out of earshot from Zero.  
  
"Thanks." He said. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?" he asked.  
  
"About, last...night." she said. "Okay." He said.  
  
"I just need to tell you that, uh, you're a great guy and all, and I feel so happy that you think of me in that way and that I have made you feel the way you feel." She said.  
  
He smiled. "Thanks." He said.  
  
"And I hate this. It's just, I do belong to Evan. I mean, we have been friends forever and I just belong with...him." she said. "It's not that I don't like you. I really like you, Stanley, just not in the way." She said. "I'm sorry."  
  
She started walking away and before she opened the tent flap, she saw a tear roll down Caveman's face. 


	16. Do you love him back?

Evan walked up to Grace after she got done digging her hole the next day.  
  
"Hi Grace!" he said.  
  
"Oh, hey." She said.  
  
"What's the matter?" he asked.  
  
It's time for me to tell him.  
  
"Oh, well, I was just thinking." Grace said.  
  
"About what?" Evan asked.  
  
"Well, something that happened last Friday." She said. "  
  
What Grace?" he asked.  
  
"Well, when I was dancing with Stanley, he uh, he um, well, he just.."  
  
"Did he hurt you?!" he interrupted, sounding worried.  
  
"Oh, no! He didn't. He just said something, that's all." She said.  
  
"What did he say Grace?" he asked.  
  
"He said that...he loves, me." She said.  
  
"So?" he asked.  
  
"So..I couldn't answer him." Grace said.  
  
"How come?" he asked. Grace was stunned. She thought he knew that they belonged together. She couldn't find her voice.  
  
"Grace? Did you think that you couldn't answer because of me?" he asked. "You belonging to me?" he said, correcting himself. Grace nodded.  
  
"Oh Grace. No. I'm your best friend. That doesn't mean that you can't get a boyfriend." He said, laughing. Grace laughed.  
  
"Why are you laughing at me?!?!" she exclaimed, smiling.  
  
"You're just..funny. Listen Grace, do you love him back?" he asked. Grace stopped laughing.  
  
She hadn't really thought of that.  
  
Courtni and Magnet were playing pool with Squid and Charm. Court and Magnet, so far, were winning.  
  
"Oh, yeah! I'm gonna beat your little butts!" said Magnet. Court looked at him like he was so adorable. She smiled.  
  
"Oh yeah? Well watch this." Squid said. He took a shot and the solid green ball rolled in.  
  
"Ha! Now we're even!" said Squid. Magnet made a face and he took a shot and did the same thing.  
  
"Now we're not!" he said. And this went on for the whole game. Even when Court and Charm took turns, the girls weren't the ones talking competitive back and forth. The boys did.  
  
Finally, the game ended and Court and Magnet won. Squid sat back and frowned. "Nobody beats me and my girlfriend in pool!" he exclaimed. Charm rolled her eyes. She really didn't care if they lost. But she did like how Squid was backing her up.  
  
"Hmm, uh, let's see now..I just did!" said Magnet. Courtni laughed and hugged him. He was so cute.  
  
Twitch was trying to fix the antenna of the broken TV. Zig-Zag was looking at last years TV Guide. "Now?" asked Twitch. "Nope." Zig-Zag said.  
  
"Let's play another game if you think you're so tough." Squid said.  
  
"Fine." Magnet said. Then they started playing their 3rd game of the day. The boys didn't even take a shower. Charm and Courtni took showers while the boys played the 1st game. But, luckily, Armpit smelled worse so no one could really smell Squid and Magnet.  
  
It was time for lights out when they were halfway through the 4th game.  
  
"Tomorrow, we start another game." Squid said.  
  
"Deal." Said Magnet, and then they shook hands. Court thought it was so cute how they would act like businessmen here at Camp Green Lake.  
  
It just looked funny. She smiled.  
  
"Great!" exclaimed Zig-Zag. "Dumb Twitch over here can't even fix a TV so I can watch Star Trek!"  
  
"Shut-up Zig." Twitch said. And they argued on like that until they reached D-Tent. Magnet, Courtni, Squid, and Charm made their way back to D-Tent as well.  
  
"So, Court, wanna go to the dance with me again on Friday?" Magnet asked as they were walking to D-Tent.  
  
"Sure!" said Court.  
  
"Well, speaking of dancing, wanna go with me Charm?" Squid asked.  
  
"Ok!" she said.  
  
They finally reached D-Tent and saw Twitch and Zig still arguing on their cots. (Their cots were next to each other.) X-Ray and Armpit were playing some game that involved dice. No board game, just dice. They looked extremely bored.  
  
"Who won?" asked X.  
  
"Me and my girl, Courtni." Magnet said. That made Court feel really good. His girl. she thought. She smiled and looked at Magnet. He smiled back with an adorable smile with a twinkle in his eye. She hugged him.  
  
"Ooo, Squid never loses!" said Armpit. Squid made a face, clearly not happy with Armpit rubbing it in.  
  
"Do you?" asked Evan.  
  
"I-I-I've never, uh, really thought.about...it." she said.  
  
"Then think about it now." He said. She sat down on the dried up lake bed. Evan sat down next to her. After a long silence, Grace came to a decision. 


	17. Grace's Decision

A loud horn blasted. Courtni was used to this. She got up as fast as she could so she wouldn't get stuck out in the hot sun. She saw Magnet and ran over to him.  
  
"Have you seen Caveman and Zero anywhere?" she asked. "I didn't see him last night in D-Tent."  
  
"No, I haven't, maybe Grace of Evan knows." He said.  
  
"Ok, let's go ch---" Court was interrupted by the voice of Mr. Pendanski.  
  
"Time to go dig!" he called, after his usual short speech for the new kids.  
  
"Alright, we'll ask them after we dig our hole." Magnet said. "Ok." Courtni said.  
  
Grace had come to a decision. She did love Caveman. She told Evan and he was all for it. The next day, she was walking on the dry lake bed, looking around for Caveman. Where is he? she thought to herself. I don't see Zero either. Grace ran up to Courtni and Magnet.  
  
"Hey guys!" she said.  
  
"Hi!" said Court and Magnet.  
  
"Have you guys seen Caveman and Zero around?" she asked.  
  
"No. We were just going to ask you the same thing." Magnet answered.  
  
"Hmmm. I wonder where they're at." Grace said, sounding worried. Court shrugged. Grace stayed worried all day as she dug her hole out in the hot sun. She was starting to think of all of the bad things that could happen to Caveman and Zero.  
  
They were finally finished with digging their hole, but still not one sign of Caveman or Zero. Grace was starting to get more and more worried as time went on.  
  
She went into the Wreck Room and watched Magnet, Courtni, Squid, Charm, and Evan play pool.  
  
This time, Evan wanted to beat all of them by himself. Magnet and Court were on a team, Squid and Charm were on a team, and Evan was on his own team.  
  
Then she saw Caveman and Zero walking together. Grace ran up to them.  
  
"Where in this stupid dried up miserable nightmare could the both of you have run off to without someone seeing or hearing from you?!" Grace yelled, sounded furious because she worried over nothing. Zero looked at her like she was crazy.  
  
"Are you feeling okay Grace?" he asked.  
  
"What? What?? 'Am I feeling okay??' You guys have been gone, all day, and you ask me if I'm feeling okay?" she slammed herself down on the couch.  
  
Everyone stopped talking. Squid stopped arguing with Evan about winning his game of pool. Even Zig-Zag stopped hounding X-Ray and Armpit about not wanting to watch TV with him. Twitch was still twitching, as usual, but he looked like his favorite car just got stolen.  
  
"I-I-uh, I'm fine, you guys can go back to what you were doing." Grace said. Everyone instantly went back to normal, but Evan walked over to Grace, along with Caveman and Zero.  
  
"Come on Evan! It's your shot!" exclaimed Squid. He sighed.  
  
You, uh, you were that worried about us, Grace?" asked Caveman.  
  
"Well, yes." She said.  
  
"Grace. They're here now. Tell Caveman about what we talked about earlier." Evan said.  
  
"You-you're sure?" Grace asked.  
  
"Yes! If you really feel that way, tell him!" he said.  
  
Grace grabbed Caveman's arm and brought him to the corner of the room where no one was sitting.  
  
Evan walked over to everyone at the pool table and took his shot. "Do you want to be on my team, Zero?" Evan asked him. Zero's face lit up and he smiled and said, "Sure Evan! Thanks!"  
  
"Caveman." Said Grace. He looked at her with eyes that looked like they were really listening. "Um. I, uh, I'm sorry about, last..night." She said.  
  
"It's okay. I understand, you belong to Ev---"  
  
"No! Caveman, no. I belong with Evan as a friend, a best friend. But I truly....belong to you." 


	18. The Fight

But I truly...belong to you. Caveman couldn't get those words out of his head. He yelled and picked Grace up and twirled her around, smiling. Grace yelled and hugged him.  
  
"Grace! W-W-Why don't you want to be with Evan?" he asked.  
  
"Well, because he's my friend. And it'd feel to weird to be with him like that." She said. Caveman smiled and hugged her again.  
  
"Grace. Do you want to go with me to the dance this Friday?" Caveman asked her.  
  
"Of course." she cried.  
  
5 days later  
  
Grace thought that she had everything, her friends, Caveman, her freedom to do what she wants (after she digs her hole, of course) and the Friday night dances.  
  
Zig-Zag started walking up to Grace.  
  
"Hey Grace? Mr. Sir wants you in his cabin." He said.  
  
"Oh, okay." She said as she made her way through Camp Green Lake to Mr. Sir's cabin.  
  
"What can I do for you, Mr. Sir?" she asked as she walked into Mr. Sir's office.  
  
"I just wanted to announce some uh, bad news." He said. Grace's heart sank, no more happy times for her.  
  
"W-What is it, sir?" she asked. "Oh..boy..you, Evan, and Caveman are, uh..outta here in a week." He said.  
  
What??? That's not BAD news! Grace thought to herself. She smiled a huge grin and jumped up from her chair.  
  
"Yes!!!" she cried. "Oh, I mean, that's so awful Mr. Sir. Bye!"  
  
And then she ran out, trying to find Caveman and Evan. There's Evan.  
  
"Evan! Evan! Come here quick!" she yelled for him. He jumped at hearing his name and ran over to where she was standing.  
  
"What?" he asked."  
  
"You are not going to believe what Mr. Sir just told me!" she said, not being able to hold it in.  
  
"What?" he asked again.  
  
"We get to go home in a week!!!!" she yelled and almost everyone at Camp Green Lake turned to look.  
  
"Oops." She whispered.  
  
"What? That's great!" bellowed Evan as he picked her up and hugged her. They both smiled.  
  
"Let's go find Caveman." She said.  
  
"Why?" he asked.  
  
"Because he gets to go too." She said.  
  
"Oh, well, then what are we waiting for?" he asked as they started walking to find Caveman. They looked around and saw that the rest D-Tent were still out on the lake digging their hole. "Wait a minute. We just got done with our holes, how come they're not back yet?" Grace asked him. People were walking around and shouting a lot.  
  
"Evan. Why aren't they digging their hole?" Grace asked. "I dunno. Maybe we should go see." He said and he ran down to where they were digging.  
  
"Evan! Their fighting!" she yelled. "Come on! Hurry!" he said and started to run faster to the scene...  
  
"Come on! Eat my cookie!" yelled Zig-Zag and he shoved the cookie into Caveman's mouth. Then Zig-Zag started attacking Caveman and lying on top of him, punching him, not giving Caveman a chance to fight back. Grace ran up to Zig-Zag and tried to pull him off.  
  
"Stop it! You'll kill him! Get off! PLEASE!" she cried.  
  
Evan and Zero ran over to help Grace. Then Zero got on top of Zig-Zag and started choking him. He wouldn't let go.  
  
After a bunch of discussing all of this with Mr. Pendanski, he said, "Well, Zero, take this shovel. It's all you'll ever be good for." He said.  
  
Grace gasped. "How dare you?! You're supposed to be the counselor around here!" she screamed. "Zero! Don't listen to him! He's full of crap! You'll be good for way more than that!" she screamed again.  
  
Caveman and Evan agreed, along with Magnet, Courtni, Squid, and Charm.  
  
"I'm not going to dig another hole." Said Zero.  
  
"Oh yes you will young man!" said Mr. Pendanski.  
  
"I said, I'm not going to dig another hole." And Zero grabbed the shovel that Armpit was holding and swung it hard like a baseball bat at Mr. Pendanski. Zero started running towards...nothing. Just into the desert. 


	19. Buzzard Food

"Zero!!!" Grace screamed. "Evan! Caveman! Come one! We have to go after him!" she yelled. They both started running after Zero with Grace following close behind them.  
  
1 day later  
  
"Don't you think that we should've gone after them Magnet?" Court asked him, worried about their friends.  
  
"Yeah, but we didn't have any water and we would just slow them down." He said. Court slammed her back on the couch.  
  
"But still! I think that we should have done something for them! I mean, poor Zero." She said. "  
  
Court. You know that I care for them. But not as much as I care for you, I don't want you do die out there." He said. What he just said stopped Courtni from arguing with him. He is so sweet. she thought to herself.  
  
"We're going to have to dig 2 holes tomorrow, Court." He said.  
  
"What? How come?" she asked. "Because the Warden still wants 13 holes." He said. "But-but-that's just not fair!" said Courtni.  
  
"I know, Court." He said. "But we have to." He hugged her.  
  
Evan, Caveman, and Grace were so exhausted. Caveman had been carrying Grace on his back most of the way. Grace was falling to sleep. Then Caveman collapsed. It woke Grace up suddenly and she coughed as the dust went into her eyes, nose, and throat.  
  
"Whoa, Caveman. Get up buddy." Evan said. Evan helped Caveman up and then took Grace on his back. Grace started to get drowsy when she saw something about 15 feet away. She pointed at it. "What is that?" she asked the boys in a hoarse whisper. The boys looked up.  
  
"I dunno." Said Evan.  
  
"Well, let's go find out." Said Caveman. Evan let go of Grace and they all started running to the lump. As they got closer, they could tell that it was a boat.  
  
"What does it say there?" asked Grace. "Hmm, it's says Mary Lou." Said Caveman.  
  
"Who's Mary Lou?" Grace asked. Then she saw a foot sticking out of the boat. Grace screamed, jumped back, and fell down. She coughed from the dust scratching her throat. Caveman ran over to her. She put her hands over her eyes. Please don't be dead..please don't be dead...please don't be dead.. She thought.  
  
Caveman helped her up and put his arm around her.  
  
"Shhh..it's okay." He said. Evan went over to the foot and tapped it. "Oh, please Evan, don't do that." She said, a tear rolling down her cheek. Then they heard a groan.  
  
"Zero!" screamed Grace. "Are you okay?" she asked as she saw him climbing out from under the boat. "Zero!" yelled Grace as she ran to him and hugged him. He almost fell over. After a long time of hugging, Zero said, "Want some Sploosh? You guys have got to be thirsty."  
  
"What's Sploosh?" Grace asked.  
  
"Come here." He said, waving towards the inside of the boat. Grace, Evan, and Caveman followed Zero inside the boat.  
  
"We don't want an investigation!" the Warden yelled at Mr. Sir and Mr. Pendanski. Magnet and Courtni were eavesdropping on them, standing outside Mr. Sir's cabin.  
  
"But what are we supposed to do? The girl and her brother have family!" Mr. Pendanski said.  
  
"Actually, they don't, and they're not related." Mr. Sir said, quietly.  
  
"Excuse me?" Said the Warden.  
  
"They aren't related and they don't have family." Mr. Sir repeated.  
  
"Excuse me?"  
  
"You heard me." He said under his breath.  
  
"Excuse me? What happened to their family?" she asked.  
  
Mr. Sir heaved a sigh of relief, knowing what the Warden could have done to him for saying that. "Evan's and Grace's fathers are dead and their mothers don't care." He said.  
  
"Excuse me? What about Caveman? He has a family." She said.  
  
"We could just tell them that he ran off and he never came back." Said Mr. Pendanski.  
  
"You idiot! They are going to ask why we didn't run after them with the truck!" she yelled. "We could tell them that we...did go after them. 'But we never found them. Face it Mr. and Mrs. Yelnats, .your son is buzzard food.'" Mr Pendanski said.  
  
"I like that, I like that." Said the Warden.  
  
Courtni looked over at Magnet who had a look on his face like "who do they think they are?" Court mouthed the words "how could they?" Magnet shook his head. And then Courtney saw a tear roll down Magnet's face. 


	20. ZigZag

Grace looked around inside the boat. It was a lot cooler and it was really cozy.  
  
"So, what's the Sploosh that you were talking about Zero?" she asked him.  
  
"Oh! I found it in the boat." He handed her, Evan, and Caveman and jar of something that looked like mud.  
  
Evan made a face. "Ew, it looks like mud!" he said.  
  
"Yeah." Grace agreed. Caveman just went straight to the jar and took a big gulp. He closed his eyes like he was in heaven.  
  
"Oh you guys. You don't have any idea what you're missing. Go on, drink it." Caveman said. Grace hesitated and then took a tiny sip. Her eyes widened and then she took a big gulp. Evan didn't take a drink.  
  
"Awww, come one Evan! It's great!" she said. He took a drink and then took another and another and another.  
  
"This rocks!" Evan said. After they were all finished drinking up their jars of Sploosh, Grace asked, "Do you have any more?"  
  
"No, that's it." Zero answered. "What? You mean, we're going to die of thirst out here?" Evan asked.  
  
"We have to go back." Caveman said. "I'm not digging any more holes." Zero said.  
  
"I know, and you might not have to." Caveman said.  
  
"What do you mean?" Grace asked.  
  
"Hmm..well, you remember, Zero, when I found a gold lipstick tube? The one with KB on it?" Caveman asked.  
  
"Yeah." Zero said. Evan and Grace looked at each other, wondering what in the world they were talking about. "Well, I think that's where we might find the treasure." Caveman said.  
  
"What treasure?" asked Evan and Grace at the same time.  
  
"Well, the tube belongs to Kate Barlow. And she is the one who buried the treasure so know one could find it." He said.  
  
"But how did she get all the treasure?" Grace asked.  
  
"She stole it from all the people that she killed." Caveman said.  
  
"Ooo." Said Evan.  
  
"Well, than what are we waiting for? Let's go get rich!" Grace said.  
  
"Wait...we're going to have to be sneaky. We have to get shovels first, and it's going to have to be in the night." Caveman said. "Right." Grace said. "Alright, let's go." Evan said. Everyone made their way out of the boat and walked, once again, across the dried up lake.  
  
Magnet! Magnet! Get up sleepy head!" Courtni whispered in Magnet's ear. He stirred.  
  
"What time is it?" he asked "I didn't hear the horn."   
  
"It's like 2 o'clock in the morning." Court said.  
  
"What? Why are we getting up so early?" he asked. "Because we have to figure out how to make sure that Caveman's parents don't think he's dead!" she said. "Yeah, but why do we have to get up so early to do that?" he asked. "Because! We.uh...we just do!" she said. But the truth was, Courtni didn't know either.  
  
6:30 A.M. "So..what are we going to do?" Mr. Pendanski asked The Warden.  
  
"You'll do as I say." She said, putting on her hat and walking out of Mr. Sir's cabin.  
  
"What did she say? Well what'll we do?" Mr. Pendanski asked Mr. Sir.  
  
"You'll do as I say." Mr. Sir said, putting his hat on and walking out. Mr. Pendanski just starred forward.  
  
"But you didn't say anything either!" he exclaimed, walking out.  
  
Once he was outside, X-Ray called him. "Hey, Mom!" X-Ray waved to Mr. Pendanski to come over. Mr. Pendanski walked over to where X-Ray was standing with Armpit and Zig- Zag.  
  
"I know what your whole plan is about.." he leaned in so only "Mom" could hear, "..about Caveman with his family." He said. Then Court and Magnet stepped out from behind them and Court said, "Since we know that, we're not going to let you tell them." She said. "Yeah, and if you tell The Warden or Mr. Sir about what we just said.." Magnet put his shovel in front of him.. "you're a goner." He said. Zig-Zag, for the first time that Courtni had ever heard him, laughed. 


	21. The Box

"Look Magnet!" Courtni said, pointing at a car pulling into Camp Green Lake. He looked.  
  
"That must be Caveman's parents!" Courtni said.  
  
"Yeah." Said Magnet. "Let's go. We want to be the first ones to meet them." Magnet said, winking. Mr. and Mrs. Yelnats stepped out of the car.  
  
Courtni and Magnet ran after them. "Mr. and Mrs. Yelnats?" Magnet asked.  
  
"Oh, yes." Said Mrs. Yelnats. Magnet held out his hand. "I'm Jose, my friends call me Magnet. You know, we all have nicknames. Anyway, it's a pleasure to meet you. I'm a friend of Stanley's." Magnet said. "And this is my girlfriend, Courtni." He said, putting his hand on Court's shoulder.  
  
"Hi! Nice to meet you." Said Courtni, shaking both their hands. "Now, we have some important news to tell you about Stanley." Said Courtni, getting straight to business.  
  
"The leaders of this camp are liars. Don't believe anything they say. But, you have to pretend that you believe them, otherwise, you're son will be in trouble. What ever you do, don't believe a single word they say. After they talk with you, get in your car and drive about 1 mile down the road, back where you came from, of course. Make them think that you are going home. Once you are about a mile down the road, stop and we'll get out of one of the holes. Then, we'll tell you the complete truth about Stanley, okay?" Court said, wondering if the Yelnats' will believe them. Mr. and Mrs. Yelnats nodded. "Thank you, kids." Said Mrs. Yelnats.  
  
"Why.you must be Stanley's parents. Pleasure to meet you." Said the Warden, once they were in her cabin.  
  
"We have some...uh...disturbing news...you may want to sit down." She said. "Your son ran away last night, along with 3 other kids. He went in the direction of.the desert, obviously, and he has never returned." Mr. Sir said.  
  
"How long ago was that sir?" asked Mr. Yelnats, trying to be as teary as he could.  
  
"Last month. He didn't have any water or food. I'm sorry..he's gone....forever." said Mr. Pendanksi. Mr. and Mrs. Yelnats burst into tears and they walked out and got in their car.  
  
"Do you see them?" Mr. Yelnats asked his wife as they kept driving down the road. "No. Keep looking."  
  
And then Courtni and Jose jumped out of the hole and ran to the car. "Okay, listen very carefully. Stanley did run away, but he ran away today..not last month. He did leave with 3 other kids with no water. Stanley isn't that stupid to stay out there, so we need to stay here until we see them. Okay?" said Magnet. Mr. and Mrs. Yelnats nodded. "We can stay in the car and we'll leave it running. It has air conditioning so you won't get hot. Get in kids." Mr. Yelnats said.  
  
"You can sleep here too." Mrs. Yelnats said.  
  
"Thanks." Said Courtni and Magnet. They went right to sleep even if it was 5:00 in the morning.  
  
"Alright. Zero, you go with Grace and get 4 shovels. Evan will come help me find the right hole." Zero and Grace nodded and started sneaking into camp.  
  
Zero collapsed and clutched his stomach. Grace gasped. "Zero! Are you okay?" she whispered worriedly. Zero was groaning.  
  
"Zero! Are you okay?" Grace whispered again. He got up, nodded and said, "Let's go."  
  
"I think this hole was the one." Caveman said. "You think?" Evan said. "Oh alright. I know that this was the hole." Caveman said.  
  
"You sure?" Evan asked. "Yes! I'm sure! Get down and hide." Said Caveman.  
  
Caveman and Evan heard footsteps. It sounded like someone fell. "Zero!" Caveman and Evan heard Grace's voice. They both got up out of the hole and helped Grace with Zero.  
  
"He's been doing this the whole time on our way here." Grace said worriedly. Zero was on the ground, moaning again while holding his stomach.  
  
After some silence, Caveman said, "You stay here and help Zero, let him rest, and Evan and I will start digging."  
  
"No way! I'm the fastest digger." Zero said in a hoarse whisper.  
  
"Oh no you don't! You're not stepping foot inside that hole Hector Zeroni." Grace said. Caveman laughed. "Come on Evan, let's go." He said.  
  
"Here's the box! I found a box! This might be it!" Caveman yelled. Grace looked up. Zero was digging now, but the boys let her stay there.  
  
Suddenly, Grace was jerked up by someone holding onto her sides. She screamed. She was instantly blind-folded and gagged.  
  
"Now what have we got here?" The Warden.  
  
Grace heard someone laugh stupidly.  
  
"No! Let her go!" she heard Caveman say.  
  
"Excuse me?" said the Warden.  
  
"You heard what he said! Let her go! She didn't do anything!" yelled Evan. "Take me instead!"  
  
Grace shook her head frantically. "Oh...oh, gon't...Ibe fine." She said.  
  
"No, you're not fine. Let her go!" Grace was surprised to hear that Zero said that.  
  
"Ooooo..wow, Zero talked!" said Mr. Pendanski. "I've always known that little Zero here, can talk!" said the Warden.  
  
"I didn't..I've always thought he was a mute." Said Mr. Sir, under his breath.  
  
"Why don't you hand over that box, Zero." Said the Warden. 


	22. Tears of Happiness

"No." Zero said.  
  
"Excuse me? I just asked you to hand over the box and I expect you to listen!" yelled the Warden.  
  
"No! It belongs to Stanley." He said.  
  
Evan, Grace, and Caveman looked over their shoulders at Zero.  
  
"What?" the Warden yelled.  
  
"Well.that's impossible!" said Mr. Pendanski.  
  
"No! It isn't! Look. It has his name on it!" said Zero.  
  
Evan, Grace, and Caveman turned their heads to look where Zero was pointing, and sure enough, it had "STANLEY" written on it with rusted gold letters.  
  
"I-I-What? No. That's...you're lying! You somehow, uh, put the letters there while we weren't looking." The Warden stammered.  
  
Zero was about to talk when a man spoke, "I think that it's quite impossible that Zero would ever find letters like that, let alone, glue them on the trunk without you seeing him."  
  
Evan and Grace looked at each other, wondering who that man was. There was also a women standing there, with Courtni and Magnet!  
  
"Magnet! Court! W-What are you guys doing here?" Grace asked, completely delighted.  
  
"This is Stanley's parents, it's a long story, but I'll tell you later." Said Magnet. Mr. Yelnats grabbed Grace's hand and helped her out of the hole. Then he got Evan, Caveman, and Zero out safely. Mr. Pendanski, Mr. Sir, and The Warden all just stood there, looking bewildered.  
  
"Mom, Dad, this is Evan, my good friend that I met here." Stanley said. "Hi hon. Nice to meet you." Mrs. Yelnats said.  
  
"This is Hector, my other really good friend." He said. "Hi" They said.  
  
"You know Court and Magnet." He said.  
  
"Yes." Said Mrs. Yelnats.  
  
"Grace, come on." Caveman said to Grace, who was standing away from everybody.  
  
"Mom, Dad. This is my girlfriend, Grace." He said. Grace felt happiness rush through her. She held out her hand.  
  
"Hi! Nice to finally meet you." She said.  
  
"Oh! Proper young lady, as well." Said Mrs. Yelnats.  
  
"Mom!" Stanley said, annoyingly.  
  
Finally, Evan, Courtni, Jose, Grace, Hector, and Stanley were driving out of the miserable hole of Camp Green Lake.  
  
"Mom? Dad?" Stanley asked.  
  
"What is it sweetie?" asked Mrs. Yelnats.  
  
"I was wondering. Can Evan, Grace, and Hector live with us? They have no where else to go and they would be on the streets." He said.  
  
"Oh, well, I think we can work something out!" Mr. Yelnats said.  
  
"Oh! Stanley! Thank you." Grace said. "Anything to make you happy, Grace." He said.  
  
Grace just melted. She hadn't felt loved by a family like this in a long time. Evan was always loving, so was Jose, Court, and everyone else. But it's not the same. She was accepted into a family now. A real, true family.  
  
"Thanks man." Said Evan, reaching his hand out to shake Stanley's. Instead, Stanley hugged him. Evan was surprised. "Thanks for being my friend while I was at Camp Green Lake, Evan...everyone!" Stanley said. Grace smiled.  
  
Mr. Sir, The Warden, and all of the other so-called counselors at Camp Green Lake got arrested. The camp got shut down, and was reopened into a Girl Scout Camp 5 months later.  
  
"Evan! Hotdog or burger?" Stanley asked him.  
  
"Uh..is it alright if I have both?" he asked.  
  
"I don't care." Stanley said, smiling. "Cheese or no cheese? That is the question." He said. Grace laughed, Stanley knows how much Grace loves Shakespeare.  
  
"Cheese." Evan said, smiling. They were at the park, having a barbecue. Evan, Hector, and Grace, have been living with the Yelnats for over 2 months now. Court and Jose have been living with Court's family. Hannah decided to stay with them too.  
  
"What about you Hector?" he asked.  
  
"I'll have a burger." He said. "Cheese or no cheese?" he asked. "No cheese." Hector said.  
  
"And Grace? What can I get for you, my sweet?" he asked. Grace laughed again. She loved her life now.  
  
"I'll have a burger please." She said. "With cheese."  
  
"Coming right up." He said. When they were finished eating, Stanley came up to Grace.  
  
"Grace." He said.  
  
"What?" she asked.  
  
"I just wanted to say, I'm having a great time with you." He said. Grace smiled. Then a tear rolled down her cheek.  
  
"Grace, what's the matter?" he asked.  
  
"Oh! No, it's nothing." She said.  
  
"Listen. When people cry, it's always..something. It's never nothing." He said.  
  
Grace smiled. "It's just.the thing is...I'm happy. I've never felt this, loved by so many people at once. It's always been Evan and my sister." She said. "I'm just so happy, that I hope it's not a dream, and I hope that everything won't go away too fast. Like what happened to me before. I don't want that to happen. I want to stay happy like this...forever. With you." She said. "I'm scared of being alone again."  
  
"Oh, Grace, that'll never happen okay?" he said, pulling her into a warm hug. "I will never leave you okay? You are going to grow up, get married, have kids, grow old, and die. You will live and die, feeling loved." He said.  
  
"Oh Stanley." She said. "You are so sweet."  
  
He didn't say anything. He just hugged her tighter. When they were done hugging, Grace said, "I love you."  
  
"I love you twice as much." Stanley said.  
  
Stanley leaned over and kissed Grace softly on the lips. Grace closed her eyes and enjoyed this moment to the fullest.  
  
"Stanley?" Grace asked. "What?" he asked. "Thank you. Thank you for being my friend at Camp Green Lake, for being so tremendously sweet to me all the time, for caring, and for..loving me. Thank you for loving me the way my mom used to love me, and the way Evan and Hannah love me." She said.  
  
"You're welcome Grace. And I won't ever stop." He said. Stanley smiled, and for once, Grace cried tears of happiness. 


End file.
